BRONX, N.Y. — Five members of the Judge family played water polo for Iona University. Only two, the patriarch, Francis, and Chris, donned a Fordham University maroon cap in their careers. Tonight the Ram alumni have bragging rights as Fordham defeated Iona University, 24-10, in the Messmore Aquatics Center during the annual battle for the Judge Cup.
With the win, Fordham improves to 16-1 on the season while Iona falls to 6-16.
Fordham was led by sophomore Diego Tresa, who netted four goals, while freshmen Oktavian Veklyuk, Petar Kulas and Karlo Dragosevic each added three goals.
The Rams built an 8-2 lead at the conclusion of the first quarter with Veklyuk and Luca Provenziani each scoring twice.
Fordham scored the first three goals of the second quarter and then extended the lead to 15-5 at the half prior to outscoring the Gaels 9-5 in the second half to claim a 14-goal victory.
The Judge Cup is named for Dr. Francis X. Judge, who was the father of five Iona water polo players, including three Goal Club Hall of Famers: Greg ’84, Matt ’86, Ray ’87, Mike ’94 and Kevin ’95. Chris ’80, his second oldest son, starred for Fordham, coached the Rams and the United States Military Academy collegiate club team in addition to being inducted as a member of the Collegiate Water Polo Association (CWPA) Hall of Fame.
Fordham, which now leads the all-time series by a 25-21 count – has taken the past 13 meetings, including a 23-7 win at the Bruno Invitational earlier in 2026 on August 30.
The win increases Fordham’s home winning streak to 38 matches, dating back to 2022.
